The X-Hawk Flying Vehicle and Its Possibilities for Good

[youtube width=”525″ height=”444″]http://youtu.be/8FFIW3qX3jI[/youtube]

The X-Hawk is a design for a Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) aircraft which is currently being developed by Rafi Yoeli and his company, Urban Aeronautics, in Tel Aviv. This futuristic looking vehicle has the capacity to accommodate ten passengers and a pilot, and the ability to take off and land vertically like a helicopter, but without the need for a dangerous helipad which requires a bigger landing zone. The vehicle has been manufactured since 2011 and is currently selling at a price of around five million USD. Yoeli stated that if funding is secured, it could be ready for fielding by 2015.
Among other advantages, the X-Hawk’s rotor-less design permits secure access to any location, which can be a great advantage where there is no terrestrial access and the use of a helicopter would be too dangerous. Urban Aeronautics proudly affirms that the X-Hawk would have reliable arrival times given the flying car’s ability to navigate ordinary obstacles such as urban traffic patterns. Moreover, the X-Hawk will be significantly quieter than any helicopter, which would facilitate the incorporation of this new means of transport into civil airspace and cities.

The X-Hawk and Its Possible Uses

The X-Hawk has a variety of possible uses, both civilian and military. The vehicle’s main military use would be as a troop carrier, to transport soldiers where a helicopter cannot. However, the civilian uses of this flying car seem more appealing than the military ones. As a carrier, it could be used to transport police forces around urban areas in record time, even if the vehicle were to find itself very close to structures such as buildings or in narrow streets. It could be further used to evacuate buildings in cases of fire or unstable constructions, and it could be incorporated into helicopter fleets to help provide medical evacuation and emergency services, adding speed, reliability and security to the process. This new vehicle could be used by fire fighters and rescue teams all over the world to help to recover victims stranded in places which are hard to reach.

With such controversy being generated over the use of drones, it is always good to keep in mind that new technology can also be developed to benefit humankind and improve our standards of living. The X-Hawk is an example of a flying vehicle with endless possibilities for good. Maybe the focus and investment should be put on these to help improve society in its entirety.